Saturday, December 22, 2012

The Varsity

          Over the past several years we have seen one restaurant/bar morph into a number of  different places. What was at one time a Mexican chain restaurant is now called The Varsity Sports Bar and Grill. Located at 8112 Beechmont Ave., The Varsity, at first glance is a sports bar that is trying to grab hold of local sports fans of all types. But on closer inspection there is very little to set it apart from a typical bar and grill.
          Like any self respecting bar, sport or otherwise, The Varsity has plenty of televisions throughout the spacious facility. But for a sports bar there is very little else that screams "man cave." Only a couple of references to the local pro or college teams and only two to the local high school that we saw. Not very sporting.
          Their Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/TheVarsityBarAndGrill) describes the place as a new neighborhood bar and grill. So what are they going for? Neighborhood or sports?
          Granted the inside is nice. It's warm and, though a little dim, inviting. Their menu is about what you would expect from any type of bar and grill, basic pub food with some sandwiches and other goodies tossed in.
Burgers
          But what we were there for was the burgers and we ordered very soon after entering as our server was right there offering a friendly smile and taking drink orders. The burgers came up in just about the time it would take to fry one. And while they were big with nice buns and garden, they had a different flavor. 
          To Mark they were reminiscent of the mystery meat burgers he had eaten back in the dark ages when he was in elementary and junior high school. If you're old enough you might remember those burgers. You weren't sure if they were actually real meat and they sat in a pan filled with grease until the lunch lady slapped it on a bun and tossed it on your plate. Ah, memories.
          Neither of us was sure if this was a good thing. The burgers were juicy but it seemed to be the juice that was adding that extra something to the taste. Neither of us can say that this added flavor was bad. But we sure couldn't say that it was good, either. You should decide. If we do go back it will be after we have forgotten those old school day memories.

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